As a pan-European digital bank, MeDirect Group has announced a profit after tax of €11.9 million in 2023, up from €8.7 million in 2022. These results were achieved during a year in which the Group focused on building sustainable growth, supported by cutting-edge technology and model scalability. MeDirect's total retail client base increased by 23% to reach 133,000. Customers' financial assets grew by 18% to €5 billion, of which €1.7 billion were assets under custody with MeDirect. These achievements were underpinned by several significant developments.
Retail products available on MeDirect's one-stop shop platform were expanded to offer a broader range of daily banking, deposits and wealth management solutions, with fast client onboarding and seamless user experience. In July 2023, MeDirect launched physical and virtual card services in Malta, with a range of card servicing functionalities available online. This development enhances MeDirect's appeal as a primary bank offering seamless digital services.
MeManaged, the bank's discretionary portfolio management service already available in Malta, was further rolled out to Belgium and the Netherlands. It is a key product aligned with MeDirect's mission to empower people to grow their wealth with autonomy and confidence. From a geographical standpoint, MeDirect's wealth offering launch in the Netherlands in May 2023 was promising in terms of new customers joining the platform and level of brand awareness reached in a short time frame.
These deliveries were possible thanks to MeDirect's cutting-edge proprietary technology, allowing innovation at a rapid pace, scale with costs under control and robust risk management. The reliability of MeDirect's platform was highlighted by an average uptime of 99.99% on all client touchpoints across multiple geographic locations. The quality of service was also reflected in a high level of client satisfaction, with amongst others a Net Promoter Score of 60 achieved in Malta. MeDirect was also recognised by clients as the second-best savings and investment platform in Belgium.
Arnaud Denis, CEO at MeDirect Group, said, "2023 was a year during which we continued to deliver at a rapid pace and to consolidate our platform. We steadily scaled our businesses both on the wealth and lending side. We now have the ambition as Malta's first digital bank to become our customer's primary bank. While great technology and client centricity remain at our core, our sustainable growth strategy relies on investing selectively, cost control and effective risk management to improve the bank's profitability in what remain uncertain global macroeconomic conditions."
During 2023, MeDirect's total mortgage portfolio increased by 22%, from €2 billion to almost €2.5 billion: Dutch government guaranteed (NHG) mortgages passed the €2 billion mark, Belgian mortgages exceeded €250 million and Dutch professional buy-to-let mortgages reached €85 million. In Malta, our mortgage book reached almost €100 million and the offering was broadened to add property investment loans, as well as an 18-month interest only feature. For all categories of lending, the Bank leverages on technology and on designing seamless processes to reduce the time required to issue sanction letters and complete home loan contracts. Across the board, MeDirect applies a robust risk selection process which has resulted in high-quality portfolios with low arrears and defaults.
On the corporate side, MeDirect continued to support the local Maltese economy by dynamically developing its franchise. The domestic corporate lending book grew to €140 million as at December 2023, with a conservative average of 54%. MeDirect also provides high quality corporate services (account opening, payments, treasury, liquidity management, foreign exchange) to approximately 400 clients across various sectors. The bank further enhanced its e-banking platform to offer best-in-class digital services to its corporate clients.
Lastly, MeDirect continued its de-risking programme, with the International Corporate Lending ("ICL") portfolio reduced from €512 million in 2022 to €329 million as at 31 December 2023. ICL assets now comprise less than 7% of the Group's total assets and 12% of its lending book at Group level.
As a systemic bank in Malta, MeDirect is regulated by the European Central Bank as part of the Single Supervisory Mechanism. Being part of the Single Supervisory Mechanism ensures that MeDirect is regulated at the standard of the largest banks in Europe. At year end, MeDirect’s total capital ratio stood at 20.3%, and its Liquidity Coverage Ratio stood at 209%. Such ratios exceed all regulatory requirements, recommendations and management buffers.
More information, including the full Annual Report and Financial Statements is available at https://www.medirect.com.mt/about-us/investor-relations/